By ANASTASIA MERCER/AP
When the students in Tony Yang’s summer volleyball program get together on weekday afternoons, the players show no mercy, even toward friends. The athletes take every opportunity to slam the red and white volleyball to the ground, while still obeying Yang’s three-hit rule, which requires them to set up shots for their peers to bump and spike.
“These teams are very challenging,” said Yapa Yang, a freshman who has been participating in the program since its inception five years ago. “You meet new friends. You meet new people. I really like it.”
Tony Yang, who came to the United States without knowing a word of English in 1987, worked his way through high school and college before helping create the Southeast Asian Summer Youth Activities program for the La Crosse School District in Wisconsin.
The program, which offers volleyball, basketball and soccer for middle and high school students, averaged about 35 students a day during the first year, but now serves about 100 students each day.
“We feel there’s a need for kids to do something in the summer — something positive to stay out of trouble,” Yang said. “Having them here and making a difference for them has been a very enjoyable experience for me.”
A 1991 graduate of Logan High School and 1995 graduate of the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, Yang started his job as home/school/community coordinator for the district just after college, thanks to a joint grant from the district and the Hmong Mutual Assistance Association.
“As the grant money ran out, the district started to pick up [costs] to keep me,” he said.
The position has Yang traveling between the three middle schools and two high schools as a liaison between students and teachers to combat truancy and behavior problems. He also helps coordinate peer support programs, after-school tutoring and a program that exposes Hmong students to different careers. In between all this, he visits students in their homes so that he can talk with Hmong parents about specific issues.
NO LONGER BORED
The summer program evolved out of conversations Yang had with students who said they were bored during the summer. The program was based in a city park the first two years, but moved to Lincoln Middle School because the facilities were better and the number of kids kept increasing. Soccer nights are held at Hogan Park.
“For a lot of Hmong kids, soccer and volleyball are the only sports they can play because size doesn’t matter,” Yang said. “[Lincoln] is a very centralized spot for the kids. Most of the Hmong kids live in the neighborhood.”
Yang said the program is open to all students, and Hmong American students occasionally bring their white and black friends. He said he hopes the students feel that they can express and develop their talents, and maybe one day, the district will consider creating a boys’ volleyball team.
“They enjoy playing it so much, but there isn’t any place for them to play it,” he said. “I think it would be good if they [district] could get something going.”
Yang also uses the program to incorporate lessons on teamwork and respect, in addition to conducting drills that hone their athletic skills. He said he thinks students prefer coming to the program instead of attending other clubs because it’s run by familiar Hmong faces.
“We understand them,” he said. “They know who we are. Their parents know who we are. They are just more comfortable.”
Tou Ger Moua, who will be a senior at Central High School, said he likes to come to the program because he can hang out with his friends and develop a healthy physique through exercise.
“It keeps you occupied,” he said. “It’s just a good place to hang out and stay out of the sun.”
Chia Lee, a freshman at Logan High School who played volleyball at the middle school level, said she looks forward to trying out for the high school team this fall.
“It helps with my volleyball skills,” she said. “I’ve improved a lot since I’ve been coming.”
Bill Chang, a sophomore at Central who first started coming to play soccer, said the volleyball matches are attractive to Hmong American students because everybody gets a chance to play.
“If there wasn’t this program, there’s nothing to do,” he said. “That’s when people start getting into trouble.” |
